Kayunga set for new sugar mill as Shakti Sugar gets operating licence
The approval gives Shakti Sugar regulatory authorisation for a facility capable of processing up to 1,500 tonnes of sugarcane every day, potentially increasing Uganda’s sugar-processing capacity and creating a new industrial hub in Kayunga district
KAYUNGA, August 27, 2026 — Kayunga district is set to get a major sugar-processing plant after Shakti Sugar Limited was granted a licence to establish or operate a sugar mill with a processing capacity of 1,500 tonnes of sugarcane per day [TCD].
The licence was issued by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives [MTIC] on August 26, 2026, under Form 3, Licence No. 054, authorising Shakti Sugar Limited to establish or operate a sugar mill at Nalyamabidde village, Kayunga district. The document, seen by theCooperator, bears the signature of the Minister of Sanjay Tanna and an official seal.
The licence stipulates that it is not transferable and that Shakti Sugar shall not carry on the sugar business under more than one name.
It further states that the licence may expire upon revocation by the Minister, while the holder is required to surrender it when requested by the relevant authority.
The approval gives Shakti Sugar regulatory authorisation for a facility capable of processing up to 1,500 tonnes of sugarcane every day, potentially increasing Uganda’s sugar-processing capacity and creating a new industrial hub in Kayunga district.
Jobs and farmers
Local Government Minister Balaam Barugahara Ateenyi welcomed the licence, saying the project would become the first major manufacturing industry in the Bugerere area.
“Thank you, Mr. President [@KagutaMuseveni], for granting us a sugar factory licence in Kayunga district. This will be the first sugar factory and first major manufacturing industry to be established in the Bugerere area, a region with thousands of young people in need of employment opportunities,” Barugahara posted on X on Thursday.
According to Barugahara, the factory is expected to create more than 1,500 direct jobs and provide a market and livelihood opportunities for more than 5,000 commercial sugarcane farmers.
He said the development represents a major milestone for Bugerere, Kayunga and Uganda’s wider economic transformation.
Barugahara also thanked Trade Minister Sanjay Tanna, Sugar Cane Council Chairman Rajbir Singh and members of the Sugar Cane Council for their support in the approval of the licence.
“We look forward to the commissioning of the factory soon by His Excellency the President of the Republic of Uganda,” he said.
A project with a complicated licensing history
The latest licence comes against the background of a lengthy dispute over Shakti Sugar’s earlier authorisation to establish a sugar mill in Kayunga.
In January 2025, the High Court in Kampala ruled in a case brought by the Uganda Sugar Manufacturers Association [USMA] that licences or permissions issued by the Ministry of Trade to Shakti Sugar and CN Sugar were unlawful. The court ordered the companies to halt their sugar and jaggery milling activities until they obtained valid licences from the authorised regulatory body.
Shakti Sugar subsequently filed a notice of appeal and sought a stay of execution of the High Court orders. The company argued, among other things, that it already held an investment licence issued by the Uganda Investment Authority and had obtained a development permit from Kayunga district.
The dispute centred partly on Uganda’s sugar-sector licensing framework and government policy concerning the location of new sugar mills in relation to existing factories.
The latest licence therefore represents a new development in the regulatory history of the Kayunga project.
Investment and production details yet to be disclosed
Despite the significance of the approval, the August 26 licence itself does not disclose the value of Shakti Sugar’s investment, the expected commencement date of commercial production, the projected annual sugar output, or the total number of workers to be employed.
It also does not provide details of the company’s proposed sugarcane out-grower arrangements or the amount of land expected to be under sugarcane cultivation.
The licence establishes the regulatory authorisation for a sugar mill with a crushing capacity of 1,500 TCD, but does not, on its own, confirm that commercial production has begun.
Barugahara’s comments indicate that the next major stage is the commissioning of the factory by President Museveni.
Shakti moves to brand its sugar
The project has also taken steps towards establishing a market identity.
In June 2026, official trademark records published by the Uganda Registration Services Bureau showed that Shakti Sugar Limited had applied for the trademark “KAYUNGA SUGAR” for sugar, molasses and related by-products. The application was filed on June 5, 2026.
The trademark application identifies Shakti Sugar Limited as the applicant and gives its address as Plot 183, Block 292, Kyaggwe East Buganda, Nyanga Road, Njeru, Buikwe.
The development suggests that the proposed factory could market its products under the Kayunga Sugar name once production begins.
First major manufacturing project in Bugerere
The planned plant is expected to link sugarcane farmers in Kayunga and surrounding areas to an industrial processing market, potentially creating new opportunities for agricultural value addition, employment and household incomes.
Barugahara said the project would provide a much-needed market for commercial sugarcane farmers while creating employment for young people in Bugerere.
For Kayunga, the proposed factory would mark an important expansion of the district’s industrial base.
The immediate focus now is expected to shift from licensing to construction, preparations for production and the eventual commissioning of the plant.
For now, the August 26 licence confirms that Shakti Sugar has received fresh regulatory authorisation to establish or operate the 1,500-TCD sugar mill at Nalyamabidde, while the actual start of commercial production remains to be confirmed.
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